Hold The Commercialism In Christmas Parade

November 27, 1987|By Phil Vettel.

Everything in this year`s McDonald`s Charity Christmas Parade-the bands, the floats, the balloons-has a corporate sponsor. That`s the main reason we still have a Christmas parade; it was corporate sponsorship that revived the parade three years ago, after the city had decided it no longer wanted to foot the bill.

But said sponsorship isn`t supposed to manifest itself too blatantly. The purpose of the parade, which steps off at noon Saturday at Michigan Avenue and Balbo Drive and proceeds north along Michigan to Wacker Drive, is not the creation of a three-mile-long commercial. The purpose is charity; the various companies participating are showing support for their favorite charities in hopes the rest of us will do the same.

And the floats are supposed to be fun, evoking images of Christmas, children and/or charity, not some homage to the sponsoring company. That`s why Amoco Oil Co.`s float is carrying Mickey Mouse instead of some cartoon character named Amoco Man.

Would you believe there`s someone in charge of making sure the parade units (as the floats and bands and such are called) aren`t overly self-promoting? That job falls to Nancy McCarty, although as operations manager for the parade, a great many jobs fall to her, float decor being just one of them. ``But absolutely we have theme specifications,`` says Cheryl

Zwierzynski, marketing manager of Production Contractors Inc., the outfit that runs the parade. ``Each float must meet one of our specific themes. We want sponsors to get recognition, but we don`t want rolling billboards. The parade is for kids; we want fun and amusing things.``

Of course, they want safe things, too, which is why each float sponsor

(there are 10 in this year`s parade) is issued a 20-page brochure that enumerates the various specifications each float must meet. Most important of these are the safety specifications; Michael Shapiro, who works in McCarty`s department, is the guy who checks the specs.

``Most important that we have easy access to the engine, in case it breaks down,`` he says. ``We make sure that the structural elements are safe, that the welding is good, that the casters are big enough to support the weight, that the tires are good, that the exhaust can`t start a fire. It has to be safe for the riders. Every float must have a towing attachment, so that if it breaks down completely we can haul it out of the way. Each float has to have a fire extinguisher, an extra battery, a can of fix-a-flat, ramps to get people on and off the floats.``

Shapiro says his inspections are more a matter of confirming that standards are met, rather than searching for violations. It isn`t an adversarial arrangement.

``These guys know how to build floats,`` Shapiro says. ``I`m just another pair of eyes to look at things. Maybe I`ll see something that they didn`t catch. Something I look for, for example, is that every float gets a brand-new gas filter. It`s such a simple thing, yet not having it can stop your engine.``

One reason for that confidence is that To-Di Studio in Chicago, which is building most of the 10 floats in this year`s parade, has been making floats for a long time, and for many parades. Another reason is that the floats are built like tanks.

In fact, at first they look like tanks. The understructure consists of a heavy steel frame wrapped around what used to be a car and is now an engine and a steering wheel. (Often the driver can`t see where he`s going, which is why most floats are accompanied by ``walkers,`` volunteers who walk alongside the float and use two-way radios to tell the driver when and how to maneuver.) Attached to the steel frame is a framework of pencil steel, pencil-thin lengths of steel rod that are bent and welded into the shape of the float design. This framework is covered with chicken wire before it is decorated.

And now a word about balloons. Balloons nominally have been a part of the McDonald`s Charity Christmas Parade for the last two years, when the parade route moved from State Street to Michigan Avenue. Unfortunately, the balloons haven`t been too visible on parade day; for two years running it has rained the day of the Christmas Parade, and when it rains the balloons get wet and heavy and don`t fly worth a darn. Parade officials think they have that problem solved, too.

``We designed new balloons this year,`` says Zwierzynski. ``This year, instead of renting balloons, the company decided to buy balloons designed for the conditions we deal with. These balloons, we think, are fail safe.``

Not that Zwierzynski is exactly champing at the bit for an opportunity to show how weatherproof these balloons are. If the weather is perfect Saturday, that`ll be fine with her.

``I heard the weather forecast is for a calm day,`` she says, somewhat wistfully. ``We`ve had rain, wind and cold the last couple of years, so I think we`re due for clear and sunny.``